Now is definitely the time to think about the heat in your
homes for winter. I know, I know, we
hate to think about it, particularly after such a good summer, but the cold
weather will here before we know it and the rush will be on to get warm. Unfortunately it’s a fact that many people
don’t think about their heating until the temperatures drop and as a result the
wait for stoves and installations is longer.
For this newsletter I wanted to remind you that time is
marching on, but also I wanted to give you some help on what to look for when
deciding on a stove.
I hear you asking, what’s the difference in all these stoves
that are available? Why shouldn’t we buy one from the local DIY
store rather than a specialist? Importantly,
how long are the stoves guaranteed for?
The main differences
Well, depending on the manufacturer, most quality stoves,
including Woodwarm Stoves, are really well designed. Nowadays it’s not just a
cast iron box with a door on the front.
They are well engineered to provide controllable heat, airwash systems
that work, and are very efficient. Some
of our stoves are 84% efficient and suitable for smokeless zones. The cheaper end of the market will certainly not
be as well designed and engineered, nor will be as controllable, or have a
specific air wash system.
This sophisticated air inlet system in a Woodwarm also
provides a proper air wash that blows pre-heated air down the screen every time
you use the stove, meaning you don’t have to clean soot from the door every day. Also they burn so effectively that they
produce little ash, meaning you are not constantly running outside with ash pans.
DIY Store bought stoves v. Quality Stoves
Some of the stoves you see in DIY shops don’t have upper air
inlets, or a solid grate making them neither a wood burner nor multi-fuel
model. Very few of them will stay in
overnight and as soon as you build up an ash bed you have to poke at it to
allow combustion air in, resulting in high-firing one minute and it dying away
the next, which equals a lot of effort. Just having open vents at the top of the stove
or the door doesn’t make an air-wash system.
A well designed and engineered stove will also consume less
wood because due to their precise control to enable a constant dancing burn
that doesn’t eat up the fuel. Woodwarm
stoves are so controllable that you can run them throughout the day and night
if you wish.
Yes of course you can buy from wherever you like, but
consider the options first. Do you want
a stove to stay in day in day out? Do
you want to be constantly poking at the fire in the firebox to get enough air
into it to keep it going? Do you want
to burn tons of wood?
The guarantees
Fact: Many of the DIY store purchased
stoves are only guaranteed for 1 year.
Fact:
Many of the British manufactured
stoves are only guaranteed for 3-5 years.
Fact:
Woodwarm Stoves are guaranteed for a full 10 years.
Make sure before you buy a stove that it does have a good
long guarantee.
More Information
If you want more information about our stoves then get in
touch, we are pleased to give free no-obligation advice. We
supply stoves all over France and an installation service. Steve will install within a reasonable radius
of our base, and we now have associate installers based in the Charente (16)
and the Haute Vienne (87) to the west of Limoges and very soon one also based
in Haute Vienne but to the East of Limoges.
I’ll introduce them to you in the
next Newsletter.
Finally don’t forget….
- To install your CO2 detectors or your smoke detectors for your safety or
- To buy a wood moisture tester to make sure you are burning dry wood… 18% moisture or less to prevent soot and goo forming in your chimneys/liners…and again for your safety.
- Stove pipe thermometers are also a good idea to keep your fire burning at the optimum temperatures.
To contact us follow the link back to the website where you will find our details. But here they are:
04 68 47 05 44 / 06 04 14 51 57